His Facebook profile picture is a deep red poppy pin set against a luscious gold background. It's a simple picture, but it speaks volumes. Thick but careful brushstrokes are evident, as is the fact that oil paint was used to express the image's simple but important message.

Artist Jamie Jardine painted the poppy to auction off at his show, "You Are Here," which features paintings of London, Ontario. The show is currently running at the Jonathon Bancroft-Snell Gallery at 258 Dundas St. until November 27.

Four of the paintings in the show are of local military monuments to pay tribute to Remembrance Day. "There's the tank, the South African monument and the cenotaph," explained Jardine.

"Because it (opened) on Remembrance Day, I thought it would be cool to do a still-life of a poppy." It was gallery owner Bancroft-Snell's idea to donate the proceeds from the sale of the picture to the Poppy Fund, which raises money for the Royal Canadian Legion.

Jardine has lived all over Canada, providing him with much inspiration for his artwork, which consists mostly of cityscapes and landscapes.

"(My family) started in London," he remembered. "We moved around — my dad was in the RCMP — and we went up to Yellowknife, Red Deer, Edmonton. When my parents retired in Edmonton, my family all slowly moved away from Edmonton, and then I came back here ... we all kind of did this big circle."

"(Art is) all I've ever done, even as a kid," he explained. "I wasn't in any organized sports or Cubs — all I ever did was draw."

After his brother bought him his first set of oil paints in 1996, Jardine was inspired to enroll in Fanshawe's fine art program. He graduated in 2000.

"Funnily enough, I actually failed my first year of painting," he laughed. "It was only because I was never there; I was painting the night before and fell asleep."

His first art show was at the Forest City Gallery in March of 2000. After taking down the show, he carried some rolled-up paintings under his arm through Galleria Mall, where Bancroft-Snell's gallery was located at the time. "He asked to take a look at them, and ended up buying one outright," remembered Jardine. "I had never sold a painting before, so it was fantastic. He said he wanted to see more of my stuff … and (after showing him some more) he said he'd like to represent me."

The gallery has represented Jardine for over 10 years, and his work is featured annually in a solo show.

Though oil paints are his favourite medium, Jardine is interested in experimenting more with his art. "There are a lot of things I'd like to try, I just don't have the time to do them," he said. He has two young daughters, Locklyn and Shyla, who keep him pretty busy.

No matter what medium he uses, Jardine surely has a colourful future ahead of him, with many more paintings to work on. He said he's especially looking forward to the winter, as he enjoys painting snowy landscapes.

"I'd be lying if I said I was expressing myself and came up with some profound explanation," he revealed candidly. "I just can't see myself doing anything else."

For more information about the show or Jardine, visit tinyurl.com/youarehereshow.